On 31 July 2019, he was placed under investigation for alleged "serious violations of (Communist Party) discipline and law", said in a statement by the
Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Chinese Communist Party's top anti-graft agency. Allegedly involved in the corruption cases of
Wang Sanyun and
Ye Jianming, he was expelled from the Communist Party on 11 January 2020. On 12 February, he was arrested for suspected bribe taking. On 3 March, he was indicted on suspicion of accepting bribes. On 30 July, he stood trial at the Chengde Intermediate People's Court on charges of taking bribes. In return, he received money and gifts worth more than 85.52 million yuan (about US$12.2 million). The court described this as a light punishment due to mitigating circumstances: Hu had confessed and cooperated with prosecutors. The court also ordered the seizure of Hu's assets and indicated that Hu had already returned the 85.5 million yuan that he had received in bribes. ==Personal life==